Advances in machine intelligence and automation have necessitated concomitant advances in machine environmental and situational awareness. A variety of environmental information sources are available to machine controlled systems, many of which rely on sensors to identify ambient environmental conditions and to identify changes in conditions related to events occurring in the surrounding environment. Sensor technologies have thus been a focus of research and development efforts and have been enhanced and improved accordingly. The ability to test and verify the performance of enhanced sensor technologies has necessarily improved as well.
Conventional infrared sensor testing equipment is rooted in projection-type technologies. Typical systems utilize a resistive focal plane array (RFPA) or filtered blackbody in conjunction with expensive and mechanically cumbersome optical elements (mirrors, lenses, filters, windows, etc.) to convey test target images to the aperture of a sensor under test. Such systems also typically require laboratory operating conditions, attachment to motion simulation machinery or precision placement on a vibration-isolated test stand. RFPAs utilizing pixel arrays built at the integrated microcircuit level are, while capable of producing high definition image resolutions with excellent intensity variability, operationally limited to a narrow spectral bandwidth (usually in the 3-5 μm wavelengths) and confront diffraction limitations owing to the element size. Blackbody sources are similarly limited with respect to spectral range and are further limited by their iron block heating element, which is both time and energy intensive to heat and static in terms of illumination behavior such that filter plates, diffraction plates, aperture wheels, shutters and the like are necessary to create even a rudimentary test target projection scheme. Both are limited by system development and construction costs and are often confined to controlled environments due to their costs thereby ruling out meaningful field use.
A robust, field deployable large scale emissive multispectral infrared array sensor test target system capable of rendering full motion infrared target and background images that is inexpensive to build, maintain and operate would thus be desirable.